Meet us in Phoenix and take our complimentary hotel airport shuttle to your hotel of choice. The lively capital of Arizona is famed for its year-round sun, botanical gardens and endless hiking trails! Spend the afternoon settling into your hotel, or explore this fascinating city and its stunning surroundings.

This morning we’ll meet the group over breakfast before we tour Pueblo Grande’s archaeological site and museum to learn about the first astronomers of Central Arizona, the ancient Hohokam peoples. Understand how astronomy influenced the ancients’ daily lives, and connect the questions they asked to present-day explorations of the universe. After lunch, travel to Tucson to explore Biosphere 2, a center for ecology research, sustainable technology, and a prototype for potential future colonies on the Moon and Mars. Dinner tonight in Tucson will offer a taste of local cuisine and culture.

Hidden under the University of Arizona football stadium is the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab, which produces the largest and most advanced giant telescope mirrors in the world. After an expert-led tour this morning, walk across campus to Flandrau Planetarium and take a guided tour of the night sky as seen under the 60-foot dome. After sunset we’ll join a local amateur astronomers for a star party in Sabino Canyon.

Today we’ll travel to Kitt Peak and spend the day at our national observatory, home to one of the largest collections of research telescopes in the world, including two radio telescopes, the world’s largest solar telescope, and the flagship instrument Mayall 4-meter telescope. You will get an in-depth VIP daytime guided tour of the entire summit, have a light dinner on the mountain while watching the sunset, and experience an evening observation program on one of Kitt Peak’s telescopes.

Visit the cutting edge of 21st century astronomy and the largest, most powerful telescope in the world: the Large Binocular Telescope on Mt Graham. Park vehicles will transport us along the windy ride to the top of the scenic 10,500 ft mountain. After lunch, we’ll proceed to the observatories to tour the control rooms, the living quarters, the research data rooms, and much more of all three observatories: the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope, the Arizona Radio Observatory, and one of the most powerful telescopes in existence, the Large Binocular Telescope. If there are any astronomers awake and available, we will be able to speak to them and ask them questions about their research.

Unfortunately, today is the last day of our trip. Enjoy a scenic drive back to Phoenix and an afternoon or evening flight home.